Burlington movie theatre closes its doors

The days of going to a movie in downtown Burlington have come to an end.

Encore Upper Canada Place Cinemas screened its final films and popped its last kernels of corn last Thursday.

The closure is driven by the film industry’s conversion from 35mm film to digital cinema by the end of 2013.

The resulting cost of approximately $400,000 to convert the projection equipment at the Burlington cinema is not financially viable for a second-run theatre, according to Jeff Knoll, CEO of Film.ca Inc. and Encore Films, which includes Encore Upper Canada Place Cinemas and Encore Oakville Mews Cinemas.

“The issue is not attendance that resulted in the theatre to close; the biggest issue is the conversion of theatre to digital,” Knoll told the Burlington Post. “The equipment is really expensive. On average it is about $80,000 per screen to convert. There’s a lot of independent theatres across North America that are going to be facing the same problem.”

Knoll said preference given to cinema conglomerates over independent theatres to run newly-released films meant Encore Upper Canada Place Cinemas could not become a first-run theatre to help cover conversion costs.

“There is a legal monopoly in our industry (where) the studios give preferential treatment to our chain competitors Cineplex and Empire, and because of that they get first priority over everything, so we are not allowed to play a film until Cineplex, our competitor, has played it,” he said. “It is unfair and it is ridiculous, and the government continues to allow it.”

Encore Oakville Mews Cinemas, a first-run theatre, is making the transition to digital cinema.

It features five screens and is a significantly larger at nearly 27,000 square feet compared to Burlington’s less than 8,000 sq. ft.

There was 12 staff employed at Encore Upper Canada Place Cinemas, with the majority being part-time workers. Knoll said Burlington staff has been offered positions at the company’s Oakville cinema.

“We have extraordinary, loyal staff and we are going to do our very best to place everyone in Oakville,” said Knoll, who is also an Oakville town and regional councillor.

The decision to close in December was done in conjunction with the lease expiring at the end of the month.

Crews are in the process of removing the seats and projection equipment.

An online form to request refunds of gift cards will be on Encore Cinema’s website http://film.ca at the end of December.

Knoll said it was a heartbreaking decision to close the Burlington theatre after 13 years nurturing the business.

He said he loved being part of downtown Burlington, adding he’s receptive to opening in a different site one day.

“It’s hard to say goodbye,” he said. “If an opportunity comes along to be back in the Burlington market, we’ll be the first to jump at it and take advantage of it.”

Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward said she has heard from a number of residents who are sad about the theatre’s closure.

“We’ve got a lot of comments back from residents that they are very disappointed, they have fond memories, they attend regularly and it will be a real loss for the downtown,” she said.

Meed Ward said she would like to see a first-run or second-run theatre open in the downtown core.

She cited the city-owned parking lot 4, located on the east side of Brant Street at Elgin Street, and lot 5, situated along Elizabeth Street across from Village Square, as a possible site for redevelopment that could include a cinema.

She said the closure also means one less place for Burlington’s youths between 12-20, in particular, to find entertainment, making it important to find a replacement.

“As a parent of kids of those ages, I know they often leave downtown to recreate, and wouldn’t it be great to have things down here they could do,” said Meed Ward, who also took her family to see movies at the theatre.